The Joy of Syntax: A Simple Guide to All the Grammar You Know You Should Know

Language columnist June Casagrande presents a fun and breezy guide to everything a grown-up interested in grammar needs to know. When it comes to grammar, it seems like everyone—even die-hard word nerds—feel they "missed something" in school. The Joy of Syntax picks up where sixth grade left off, providing a fresh foundation in English syntax served up by someone with an impressive record of making this otherwise inaccessible subject a true joy. With simple, pithy information on everything from basic parts of speech and sentence structure to usage and grammar pitfalls, this guide provides everything you need to approach grammar with confidence.

About the Author :
JUNE CASAGRANDE's syndicated grammar column, "A Word, Please," runs in newspapers in five states. She is the author of four grammar books, including It Was the Best of Sentences, It Was the Worst of Sentences and The Best Punctuation Book, Period, and is the face and voice of the Grammar Underground weekly podcast. She works as a freelance copy editor for the advertising department at the Los Angeles Times and for several local and national magazines.

Review :
“I am an admirer of June Casagrande, and there is a great need for a book like this.” —Mary Norris, author of Between You & Me: Confessions of a Comma Queen “There is a book I have been craving for years, and now June Casagrande has written it. … What I have craved is a straightforward book on basic grammar and usage that, without ditching the traditional grammar, informs it with linguistics, all accessible to a general reader. And now we have one: The Joy of Syntax, a succinct and mercifully lucid summing-up of the basics…. If you write, if you edit, if you teach, you will want to have this book. I intend to press it on my students. They will seldom find fifteen bucks better spent." —Baltimore Sun "This is a book for all of the grammar and punctuation nerds out there (you know who you are). Casagrande has written several books on the subject and runs the Grammar Underground, and I read these books the same way I read books of essays or novels. They’re fun. (Yes, I used fun and grammar in the same sentence.)” —Bob Sassone, Saturday Evening Post Praise for It Was the Best of Sentences, It Was the Worst of Sentences: "June mixes sassy fun with practical advice. You'll laugh all the way to writing better." —Mignon Fogarty, author of Grammar Girl's Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing "It Was the Best of Sentences, It Was the Worst of Sentences is that incredibly rare breed of book: a guide to grammar and style that is simultaneously smart, engaging, and instructive." —Elizabeth Little, author of Biting the Wax Tadpole